Episode 67: The Ghosts of Everest
In the case of Mount Everest, the climb is only half the challenge…
Episode Transcript
It goes without saying, this life doesn’t come without its challenges. Whether you’re climbing the corporate ladder, or saving your pennies to support your true passion project. Maybe you’re simply just trying to maintain a healthy diet and exercise routine. But regardless of what it is, we all have our own mountains to climb.
If you ask me, that’s the real beauty of human development. I mean you can’t get to where you’re going if you don’t appreciate where you’ve been or recognize how far you’ve come. After all, It’s the challenge that makes the journey worth its while.
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Of course, this is not to say that there won’t be moments of failure. Bouts of self-doubt and uncertainty, unfortunately, just come with the territory. And when those feelings start to creep in, we’re really only left with two options.
The first is probably pretty obvious. We can pick ourselves back up, pat off the dust, and continue trekking towards the summit. We can learn from our mistakes and use them as tools to navigate the rocky terrain that still lies ahead.
I know that’s a scary thought. But believe it or not, option two might be that much more frightening. Sure you can turn back now, you can hope and pray that you’re able to find the path back from which you came.
But I should warn you that doing so is a challenge in and of itself. And should you lose our way, those failures might even come back to haunt you.
I’m Courtney Hayes and you’re listening to haunts. Stay tuned.
Standing resolute at over 29,000 feet, Mount Everest might just be the physical manifestation of our ongoing challenges. Many have set out to claim it, many have failed. Even more have dreamt of finishing the journey—of taking the road less traveled in pursuit of fame and glory—and yet they make no moves to start the climb.
Of course, you can’t really blame them. I mean, it’s one thing to have a desire, to have a dream. But it’s a whole other thing entirely to put those dreams into motion—especially when that road less traveled is one from which many don’t return.
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You see, between the lack of oxygen at such high altitudes and the ever-changing conditions so close to the summit, it’s not exactly a secret that Mount Everest is an unforgiving mistress. One that’s claimed and kept the souls of over 200 climbers.
It’s a chilling and heartbreaking reality, but it’s something that every climber must face when considering the risks of taking up this journey themselves. Because scattered about on either side of the trail are the remains of those who came before them—fallen comrades who once walked the very road they are walking now.
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Now I’m sure many of you are wondering why have these bodies been left there. I mean, surely the families of these fallen trekkers would like to lay them to rest. So why do they remain now buried only by snow at the lonely top of the world?
Well, to be honest, there are a few reasons as to why Mount Everest has become somewhat of an alpinist graveyard. For starters, these bodies act as a grim sort of trail marker. It’s as if the dead are warning the living what might happen if they venture too far off the trail.
Which brings me to my next point. As tragic as it is, it would be incredibly dangerous to remove these frozen bodies from the mountainside.
I mean think about, if conditions were too risky for even the most experienced of mountaineers, the same could also be said for a rescue team who would be navigating those hazardous conditions in pursuit of the dead. It’s not that they don’t want to, it’s just that they can’t. Not without an extreme risk to their own safety and well-being.
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It's for that very reason that the highest points of this haunt have been given a rather disturbing nickname. Thanks to the inhospitable conditions, the likes of which have the power to claim and preserve human remains, this mountainous graveyard has become infamously known as the Mount Everest death zone.
Again, it's a region that many have set out to claim, a place that many have failed to conquer, and tragically a road from which few have ever returned.
So with a reputation like that, it's no surprise that this death zone is rumored to be haunted by the ghosts of climbers past. In fact, many of these fallen mountaineers have been given nicknames and chilling reputations that only feed into the lore.
Perhaps the most famous of these abandoned corpses is that of Tsewang Paljor, a member of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police expedition who lost his life during their Everest trek back in 1996. Today, Paljor is more commonly known by the nickname "green boots," which of course is a nod to the gear he is wearing. And as unsettling as it is, Old Green Boots once acted as a landmark on the main northeastern trail of the mountain.
You see, up until his body was moved by fellow hikers back in 2014, anyone and everyone hiking the north side of the mountain would encounter green boots at an altitude of approximately 8,500 meters. Upon this encounter, hikers would know that they were almost to the summit--almost done with the journey that Green Boots himself never got to finish.
What's even more disturbing is that it became somewhat of a tradition for hikers to photograph themselves with green boots on their way up the mountain. Think of it as a very grim way to commemorate the milestone--28,000 feet conquered, only 1000 feet left to go!
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As I said, it's grim and disturbing, especially considering that Green Boots is just one of hundreds laid to rest there on the mountainside. But given their circumstances and how quickly conditions can change up at 28,000 feet, I guess these hikers do need to find a way to make light of the situation. Otherwise, the haunting reality of Mount Everest might just drive them mad.
It's a relatively well-known fact that hallucinations are common in high-altitude settings. Between the hypoxia and the exposure, hikers all too often encounter the impossible while pushing toward the summit.
They call it "Third-Man Factor." It's a condition that has plagued countless alpinists while out in the field. Marked by dizziness, nausea, and headaches, Third-Man Factor has all the hallmarks of ordinary altitude sickness. But what sets this condition apart is that it's known to cause psychotic episodes. Yes, that's right. Psychosis at 29,000 feet, you're miles high with nowhere to run.
Now I know what many of you are thinking. If this Third-Man Factor is so common among high-altitude climbers, then surely this would account for any claims of paranormal activity.
Sure that's probably true. But given the grim history surrounding Mount Everest and the Himalayas as a whole, it's challenging to say if the following accounts are illusions of the mind or something else entirely.
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It's a relatively well-known fact that hallucinations are common in high-altitude settings. Between the hypoxia and the exposure, hikers all too often encounter the impossible while pushing toward the summit.
They call it "Third-Man Factor." It's a condition that has plagued countless alpinists while out in the field. Marked by dizziness, nausea, and headaches, Third-Man Factor has all the hallmarks of ordinary altitude sickness. But what sets this condition apart is that it's known to cause psychotic episodes. Yes, that's right. Psychosis at 29,000 feet, you're miles high with nowhere to run.
Now I know what many of you are thinking. If this Third-Man Factor is so common among high-altitude climbers, then surely this would account for any claims of paranormal activity.
Sure that's probably true. But given the grim history surrounding Mount Everest and the Himalayas as a whole, it's challenging to say if the following accounts are illusions of the mind or something else entirely.
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Let's begin with the story of Dougal Haston and Doug Scott, who 1975, set out to be the first to climb Mount Everest on an uncharted path. Of course, it was to be a perilous journey; but in the end, the expedition had been a success. Although, this likely wouldn't have been the case without a third member of their party.
You see, as Haston and Scott traversed the snow-covered terrain using nothing more than a series of tight fingerholds and jagged ledges, they began to sense that they were not entirely alone. Instead, they had allegedly encountered a third climber who opted to stick with them throughout the entirety of their trek.
This so-called climber offered the men encouragement. He gave them the push and help they needed throughout what was likely the most challenging summit of their climbing careers, all before disappearing by the time they made it off the mountain.
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Okay, I will admit that this story is a bit hard to swallow. I mean, at least from a skeptic's perspective, it seems that this third climber may have been the result of, well, Third-Man Factor--that he was mereliy the figment of a weary and overworked imagination. It's a sound argument don't you think?
Well maybe so, but what I can't shake is the fact that both Scott and Haston independently saw this man with their own eyes. And it's not like this could have been a living person who just so happened to be on the same uncharted path through the Himalayan hills.
Sure, it could have been a hallucination. But honestly, when you think about it from this perspective, that idea seems just as far-fetched as the story itself.
I don't know, maybe it is a bit of a stretch. But regardless of what it is Scott and Hasten had seen, this third man helped them through a night in the uncharted wilderness of Mount Everest.
Now whether you believe it or not, the alpinist up on Mount Everest aren't always the only ones in need of help. In fact, on rare the occassion, it's the living who is looking out for the dead.
Take, for instance, the story of Pemba Dorji, a sherpa who had an unsettling experience on the mountain back in 2004. According to his account, at least, Dorji had encountered several shadow figures while he was taking a rest near a mound of rocks.
As these shadows got closer to where he had been sitting, black tendrils emerged from the figure's sides. It was almost as if these shadows were outstretching their arms towards him. Then, if that wasn’t chilling enough, Dorji began to hear voices begging him for food.
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It was obviously an unbelievable experience for Dorji. And while he likely tried to write it off as a trick of the light, or even blame the event on his own exhaustion, well it goes without saying that the Sherpa had been thoroughly creeped out.
And honestly, who could blame him? I mean, with the hundreds of lost souls up there in those lonely hills, I think it’s safe to assume that the ghosts of Everest would be hungry for more than just a bit of company.
According to local legend at least, these haunts extend all throughout the Himalayas, with paranormal activity being reported as far south as Bemni. Apparently, this remote village secluded far up in the mountains is absolutely overrun with spirits. Oh and if the stories are true, these ghosts are sinister in every sense of the word.
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The year was 2009 when Mohan Singh encountered someone, or should I say something, outside his home there in Bemni. It was a cold winter's afternoon and Singh had been out chopping firewood.
That's when he noticed a strange man approaching him from across the yard. His arm was outstretched, reaching out for Singh with what can only be described as malicious intent. What's worse is that the sky, that the world itself was going dark around them. For a moment there, Mohan actually thought that he was going blind.
It was a startling experience, one that was quickly going from bad to worse, as this man's fingers wrapped around Mohan's sleeve. That's when Singh realized that the man's icy touch had passed right through his arm. And in that moment he knew this was a spirit trying to possess him.
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I know, it's a bold claim to make. But apparently, spirit possession is an ongoing problem there in Bemni. In fact, it's common knowledge amongst the villagers that evil spirits reside in the surrounding woods and that these spirits are known to cause illness or even death to Bemni locals.
Now it's hard to say for certain whether or not these haunts are the same as those lurking about Everest. But what we do know for sure is that these aren't the only claims of highly strange encounters coming out of the Himalayas.
By now I think it's pretty clear why Everest has such a haunting reputation. And whether they're good, bad, or downright threatening, it seems that these legends refuse to be ignored.
In other words, the energy all throughout the Himalayas is intense, to say the least. So I guess it's no surprise that these ghosts are supposedly accompanied by other beings of the unexplained.
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Let's turn our attention to June of 1933. Frank Smythe, an experienced mountaineer, author, and botanist, had just traversed across the infamous Death Zone and was now making his way down to lower altitudes.
At this point, Smythe likely thought that the worst was behind him. With his back to this mountainous zone of death, all that was left for him to do was descend back to the base.
A false sense of security settled onto his shoulders, slowly turning from peace to anxiety as he began to hear a pulsating sound above his head. That's when he noticed what he described as two bulbous objects hovering just above the peaks.
To Smythe's horror, these objects followed him for quite some time, continuing to pulsate overhead as he made his way down the mountain. That is until, seemingly out of nowhere, the objects vanished--disappearing behind a cloud of passing mist.
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Back on the ground, another bizarre creature has been documented all across the mountainside. One with feet as big as its infamous reputation. Yes, you heard that right, Yetis and other bigfoot-like creatures allegedly call this region home. Meaning that Mount Everest is a prime location for collecting cryptozoological evidence.
As a matter of fact, many a-mountaineer have discovered, cast, and photographed inhumanly large footprints pressed into the snow on Mount Everest. And even as skeptical as I am when it comes to this particular topic, it's worth mentioning that these photographs are fairly compelling.
That said, I'll have some evidence linked down in the show notes. So to get a better idea of what I'm talking about, I encourage you to pause this episode and go check the photos out for yourself. Don't worry, I'll be here when you get back.
Okay so if you ask me, the evidence I've just shared with you documents a whole lot more than a simple set of footprints. For one, these prints seem animalistic in nature in an area where wildlife is virtually nonexistent.
But beyond that, they sort of discredit the whole idea of Third-Man Factor. I mean, it's hard to argue that these prints are the result of an overactive imagination when the evidence itself is caught on film.
Of course, it's entirely possible that these footprints and the resulting photographs are all some sort of an elaborate hoax. And considering how secluded the terrain of Mount Everest can be, it wouldn't be all that difficult to stage a Yeti encounter.
Still, it's enough to make you wonder if there's more to haunts than meets the eye. Sure, at first glance, claims of paranormal activity, high strange encounters, and yeti sightings, sound just far-fetched enough to write off as illusion. That is until you're faced with damning evidence and first-hand accounts from mountain locals.
So I guess we're left to guess just how far these claims go. Is it unreasonable to believe that the world's tallest peak is being explored by more than just a few overachieving mountaineers? Or could it be that those very climbers have let the conditions get the best of them?
Truth be told, we'll probably never know the answers to those questions. Not unless we're willing to take up our own green boots and set out toward the summit. But what I will say is that in the case of Mount Everest, the climb is only half the challenge.
Sources
https://www.ranker.com/list/mount-everest-ghost-stories/max-booth-iii
https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/75567/ghost-stories-worlds-tallest-peaks
https://prezi.com/pzq6x1pjkfru/ghost-stories-from-mount-everest/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Boots
https://time.com/5069436/mountain-climbing-high-altitude-psychosis/
https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-22905530
https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/edmund-hillary-yeti-hunt-nepal